


Brush Me Into A Trance

by orphan_account



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Liam is the jock / popular guy, M/M, Multi, Zayn really likes art, Ziam Highschool AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-07
Updated: 2015-04-07
Packaged: 2018-03-21 17:34:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, No Archive Warnings Apply, Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,011
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3700979
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Liam Payne is the popular jock. He's loved by everyone, always nice to his peers and leads his team to victory every year. His teammates and friends all love him and he has a perfect high school life, not having any regrets. Except, he's still in the closet and can't come out to anyone. Not to mention most of his interests would be considered embarrassing. </p><p>Zayn Malik is the lonely art student. He spends a lot of time in the art room drawing or painting different things he's seen. Nobody chooses to talk to him because he doesn't go out of his way to make friends. All he does is paint away the scenes around him, ignoring any pain his lonely heart might feel.</p><p>In logical sense, Liam and Zayn wouldn't be good together. That didn't stop Liam, however.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Brush Me Into A Trance

**Author's Note:**

> A quick Highschool!AU of Ziam I did in a really cliche situation where Zayn is the art kid while Liam is the sports kid. I haven't done much oneshots before so this was kind of interesting to compose. Enjoy~

Liam would be the laughing storm of the school if he said he liked art.

It wasn’t supposed to be like this; he hated jocks. He was good at sports and it attracted people’s attentions. He never asked for the same faces that passed everyday with their useless spew of who is hot, who was drunk, who had sex last night—it was sickening to him. But the consequences of being nice to everyone, being good at sports and just being himself, Liam Payne—he became popular.

It was another day in the musty cafeteria where the same idle gossip was launched around his table. He flashed a smile, seeing Louis and Harry crack along with some girl of the week glued to their sides, even though Liam has to clamp down the secret where the two make out when “drunk” and claim it was just a friendship thing. He scoffed, the thought passing through him. Nothing wrong with being gay or bisexual, they don’t need to hide it.

After all, Liam was gay himself. Another secret that would ruin his identity, only his friend Niall knew about it. Otherwise, he claimed all the girls weren’t his type, that he had a specific standard one must raise themselves pass the clouds to reach. He knows that will never happen, for a girl anyway. There was one guy he had an eye for that was perfect. Perfect like a painting. His eyes kept fixating themselves around the boy as he stood in the dwindling lunch line. It was Zayn Malik.

His quiffed raven black hair that matched his deep brown eyes, the way his skin tone stood out from the rest. His tight red flannel that showed how good looking he was in anything made his heart race. Zayn was a god to him, he couldn’t take his eyes off him. He felt his shoulders tapped on the side, Niall, his blonde haired friend, gave him a worried look. Just like Liam, he was considered a jock as well.

“You shouldn’t stare at him too long dude, people will look,” he ushered him away from Zayn. The brown boy sighed, rolling back into his seat and continuing to zone in on the conversation around him. He saw Zayn walk alone, away from his sight and Liam had to hold himself back from taking just one last look at him.

***

Liam accidentally encountered Zayn, perhaps in a way by fate.

Feeling around, he realized he had left his wallet in the art room. He excused himself as his friends nodded, trotting along with their chatter while Liam retreated from the crowd and went back into the art room. As he pulled the door open, there was someone in the corner, etching onto a piece of paper that stood on a stand isolated away from everything else. He didn’t mean to make so much noise when a familiar face poked from behind.

They made eye contact, Liam’s brown eyes caught in a stare down he couldn’t escape. They probably stared for too long, but it was the only chance he could have a full look at Zayn without anyone around him. 

“U-um…” Zayn nervously retreated from his drawing, lifting a finger to the wallet Liam came for. “I put it there, i-if you don’t mind. It was on the ground…”

“Thank you Zayn!” Liam called out, trekking and grabbing his wallet. 

“You… know my name?” 

“Yeah, I mean… our art teacher always raves about your art and how good it is. So I kinda figured what your name was…” Liam lied. He had his eye on Zayn ever since the beginning of senior year. Zayn nodded, turning his back against Liam and walking a few feet before he whirled around and stared back.

“If you want.. would you like to see.. my painting? I mean you don’t have to…” but Liam flashed a grin, walking over to Zayn’s picture.

It was a black and white shaded sketch of the trees around the school. Everything about the picture stood out to Liam, the trees and the leaves swaying with the pencil marks. Even the football field’s outline was visible on the base with the winding paths circulating the school grounds. Liam was statstruk by how much detail was put into it. It captured a perfect image of the school on a cloudy afternoon, with overcast aesthetically appealing moods.

“Zayn, this is fantastic!”

“R-really? I think it’s kind of sloppy and I know I forgot to put-“ Liam laid a hand on Zayn’s shoulder, realizing what he did but continued. 

“No dude, this is really cool! I like it!” Zayn gave a sly grin before pushing his face into his sleeves. Liam couldn’t stand how adorable he was being right now. 

He cupped onto Zayn’s hands hidden in sleeves and slowly pushed them down. Zayn’s eyes widened by the contact before he could do anything. Like a deer in headlights, Zayn was frozen and his smile washed away making Liam sad.

“You shouldn’t hide your smiles, come on,” he whined. Zayn’s eyes traced away from Liam’s sight.

“I look stupid when I smile,”

“No you won’t! Try smiling in front of me, right now!”

“I don’t wanna…” Zayn whined into his jacket, picking up the pencil and etching lines again. Liam flashed a thumbs up as he headed towards the exit.  
“I’ll come by everyday to make you smile, at the same time. It’ll happen one day!” he announced before leaving the room. His face erupted in red from how embarrassing that sounded. But Liam made a promise and knew he should stop by tomorrow.

“I know I can make you smile…” he whispered, collecting all of his textbooks from his locker. His eyes lit up the more times Zayn’s face passed through his mind that day.

***

It became a daily habit, Liam would come in during lunch, claiming to be held up in tutoring to his friends. He would see Zayn working on some project every day that stole his eyes. He didn’t know how Zayn had the patience and skill to sit there every day working on such beautiful projects.

Eventually, Liam could say they were friends. He hung out with Zayn and got to know him. He’s a 17 year old boy who was from Bradford originally and really, really likes art. He can also sing, from the copious times he caught the voice of Zayn as he walked by.

“You’re so amazing, Z” he directed his attention to the painting he brushed strokes across. His eyes fixating on every spec. “You’ve been working on this one for a bit now,”

“I guess, this one is taking some time to paint,” he licked his lips, batting his eyes from the sunlight. Liam, appalled, awed at him like he was a god the way he concentrated on his work. It was so enlightening and so hypnotizing to watch him paint, he could watch for years to come. It was like a tranquil moment for Liam. He smiled, leaning back into the stiff chairs feeling the hard surface stab against his back. 

“Don’t you have football practice soon, Liam?” Zayn peeked out from the side, his eyes fixating onto him. 

“I think so, yeah…”

“… You’re skipping?”

“… Yeah” Zayn sighed, opening his mouth before Liam lifted up a quick finger to cut him off from worrying.

“It’s not a problem. I was just having a rough day with them so I came here to relax. Besides, I lov-, like, talking to you. Yeah, it’s nice,” a smile etched his lips into a smile. Zayn frowned, keeping eye contact.

“But it is a problem, Liam. You shouldn’t ditch your friends for-“

“Friends? They’re not my-“ but he stopped, realizing what was coming out of his mouth. His breath grew shaky suddenly, his feet trembling. “They’re not… my friends, Zayn. Not at all,”.

At this point, Liam’s thoughts were all connecting when he realized how lonely he was. He couldn’t process it completely, and ignored Zayn calling for him as he sprinted out of the art room, tears building up in his eyes. He realized how lonely he was after talking to Zayn. How he sort of wished it stayed as him in awe at a distance because he wouldn’t have noticed how much he hated his life, or how much he loved Zayn Malik.

***

Days rolled by. A week, another week, they all ticked on. He couldn’t bear it, looking at Zayn for two seconds caused him pain in the sides. He was so stupid, oh so stupid to continue talking to Zayn. So he continued to sit at his old spot in lunch, the same conversations passed on about who did who at the party last weekend or what’s going on in football or cheerleading. Things were back to normal, he thought to himself. Perhaps this was the best way to live the rest of your life in high school. He had a status to hold up and couldn’t let anything go against him but fuck did he feel bad.

He never saw Zayn’s beautiful eyes, the ephemeral that brought him so much joy when he gazed into those brown orbs. 

“Liam, hey, Liam” one of his teammates, Zack, bumped into his side. “You spacing out?”

“Ah, sorry. Yeah, I was,” a fake smile spread over his face. “I guess I’m just tired, that’s all,”

“Tired, huh…” he sounded unconvinced, but rolled his eyes away from Liam and joined back into the group conversation on what happened at Becky’s party. Harry, like a fan, was blowing out every detail possible that went down at the party. All Liam could do was act interested, nodding along to whatever garbage they were talking about. 

This pattern continued. They grew closer to their state championships and Liam kept busy, managing to block out Zayn from all communication and contact. This was the only way he could do it, falling for Zayn isn’t the way to go. He didn’t want to suffer anymore. 

However, each time his eyes got a glance of Zayn, his heart melted. The few times he felt the tears prick in his ears when he retreated to his haven, his room, were the worst. He wanted to stay close to Zayn but knew if he did, he wouldn’t last a minute longer. His own heart ripped apart, in fear of what would happen if he was rejected. 

***

“Are you going to tell me what’s been going on with you these past few weeks or will I have to guess?” he heard a sharp voice halting his walk to his car. Liam turned his shoulder, catching Niall in his vision. They had wrapped up their footage for the big game tomorrow, the brisk November winds causing shivers to race down his body. He couldn’t look away—Niall’s eyes fixated onto him like an eagle.

“What do you mean “what’s been going on” because I’ve been fine, you know,”

“Bullshit. You skipped Football practice for a few days and now you space out constantly. It’s that Zayn guy, isn’t it?” he raised his voice, frustration leaking in his tone. Liam, appalled, took a few steps back ready to run. 

“W-what does Zayn have to do with it?”

“You missed practice to be with Zayn. You stared at him all the time during lunch, it’s so obvious Liam. You love him like hell,” those words hit Liam hard. Even Niall, the one who was only thinking about food knew this. His feet were begging him to run, hell his whole body wanted to run. For some reason, he stayed. Niall kept his focused look onto Liam as he approached him. 

“I get it, our school isn’t the most nice when it comes to being gay and shit. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t forget Zayn though! You have to face your feelings and not run away, because do you ever wonder how Zayn is doing?”

“That’s not what it’s about! What if he rejects me? What if the school finds out? Niall, I know Zayn. He’s strong, he didn’t need someone like me in his life in the first pla-“

A solid punch into Liam’s jaw sent him a few feet back. Before he could react, Niall gripped onto his shirt and he could see the anger twisting in his expression.  
“You don’t see how he looks at you because you ignore him. You don’t see how his face drops because you ignore him. You don’t see anything about Zayn because you’re only thinking of your stupid reputation. The fuck is wrong with you, Payne? He needs you as well, yeah? You didn’t waste months with him in the art room with me covering for you for no god damn reason,”

He stopped for a moment, recollecting all of the times he spent in the art room with Zayn. Yet, he remembers making a promise. One that he should have fulfilled a long time ago. One about, about..

A smile. It was all coming back. Zayn never showed him the painting or a smile, which one he promised to do. But look at him now, rejecting Zayn for himself.  
Before his tears could leak out, Niall gave him a friendly push, making him trek his feet toward the school. “It’s not too late, you know,” he gave his last words before retreating to the other side. Liam didn’t catch a glimpse, though. He sprinted as fast as he could, tripping multiple times as he made a b-line to the door.

***

Within a few seconds after running past the empty cafeteria, all of his thoughts were on Zayn. How he prayed he was in the art room right now. Gripping onto the steel coated handle, he opened the door forcefully and ran inside.

His eyes scanned the paintings on the wall, the colorful patterns decorating the floors and the sketches on the board. But everything else was barren. The room lacked presence.

It was empty, Liam concluded as he traversed to the center of the room. There was only one person left.

Without warning, tears slid down his cheeks. The warm trickling sensation burned his stiff cheeks as he let out a sniffle. He tried to use his sleeve of his sweatshirt to wipe the tears away, but he couldn’t stop crying. Why did he feel this way to Zayn so much? What was it about him that made him such an emotional mess? Those questions repeated in his mind while he sat at a lone table, feeling the sensation of loneliness. He heard a sudden noise at the front door, quickly shooting back in embarrassment and looking at the figure.

Zayn, with multiple art supplies in his hands, quickly chucked them to the side and wrapped his arms over Liam, pulling him into a warm hug that caused Liam’s heart to race. He felt himself at ease in Zayn’s grip, letting his final tears dry up before pulling away in some resistance.

“Why… why did you do that?”

“You were crying, Liam. I did what any friend would do,”

“But how are we friends? I… I ignored you, I ditched and disregarded your feelings because I was selfish. Zayn, I can’t be your friend…” he felt the pain of his words stab him in his side, regarding the raven boy’s concerned expression.

“Why can’t we be friends, Liam? You were the one who talked to me and made me very happy. W-why can’t we be fri-“ his voice was breaking into a sob.  
Liam’s lips crashed onto Zayns in a quick second but he could taste Zayn and how their lips fit right with each other. Liam adored the sensation before he pulled away quickly, stepping back a bit.

“Shit.. I… I didn’t mean that to happen Zayn. I’m so sorry, I really mean it and I-“ but Zayn kissed him back with as much force. The sensation spreading through his body and making him melt. 

“I want to show you something,” Zayn pulled away, retreating to the side of the art room. He pulled out a well hid canvas, bringing it to the table and turning the sides over for Liam to see the picture.

It was two people, hand in hand standing in an abundance of roses and violets. A single tree above the two and beautiful blue skies trailing across the top. The flower petals also flying through the winds created an appeal that stood out to Liam. He gazed in awe at the beautiful picture, suddenly realizing the two people were boys. One with brown hair, the other with black hair.

“Zayn… is this… us?” he asked, still starring at the painting.

“Well, yes. I was gonna give it to you as a way of telling you… I love you, Liam. I’ve always loved you. I wanted to give this to you because I’m not really good with words. I thought, maybe a picture would help. I-if it’s dumb, I’ll take it back,”

“No no, it’s beautiful babe,” the word babe slipped out by accident. He dropped his arms across Zayn’s shoulders, pulling him in close and giving him a tight hug. Liam rested his circling head onto Zayn’s forehead, their lips centimeters apart.

“And I… love you too, Zayn” he spoke with hesitation in his breathing.

Zayn’s lips pursed up and formed a grin. His eyes lit up, his forehead crinkled and he smiled for the first time. Liam had to take a moment to register this, because it was beautiful in every way possible.

“You.. you smiled! You actually smiled!”

“I couldn’t help it… I mean, you said you loved me. The boy I’ve loved forever, said he loved me back. Why are you so surprised about it?”

“Because honestly, I had never seen something more pretty in my life than your smile,” he spoke softly. The two boys leaned in for one final kiss, laying down the painting on the side, the two of them glowing from the sunset sky above the skylight.


End file.
